Postam wrapper



UNITED STATES EDEN REED, OF JOLIET, ILLINOIS.

POSTAL WRAPPER.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 59,451, dated November 6, 1866.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDEN REED, of Joliet, in the county of Will and State of Illinois, have invented a new and Improved Postal Wrapper; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable others skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specication.

The object of my invention is to provide a postal wrapper, intended for doing up bundles of letters for transportation in the mails, that shall be durable and convenient and it consists in making the wrapper of a strip or piece of leather of the desired length 'and width, and applying to it a strap and buckle or strings for securing it around the package of letters, a suitable opening or openings being being made through it for exhibiting the address of the post-ofce to which the package is to be sent, whereby I economize in material,inasmuch as the paper wrappers now used for binding around the-letters are destroyed as soon as the packages are opened; and I economize also in labor, as I shall presently show.

Inthe accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a back View of my wrapper when open. Fig. 2 is a transverse section of the same when closed, taken on the plane of the line a: x, Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a back view of another style when open. Fig. 4 is a transverse section of the same when closed, taken on the plane of the line y y, Fig. 3.

Similar letters of reference indicate like parts.

A designates a strip or piece of leather, in Width about the length of an ordinary letterenvelope, and in length sufficient to permit it to inclose quite a package of letters.

In Fig. l this wrapper A has a strap, a, attached to one of its ends, and a buckle, b, at or about the center of its back, so that when the wrapper is folded around the letters it will be in a proper place for securing the wrapper around a larger or smaller package of letters.

In Fig. 3 a string, o, is employed, and this passes through the holes d d near each end of the wrapper, and is tied in the usual Way, to cause the wrapper to remain in a folded or closed state.

To enable the address or name of the postofce to which the package is to be sent tobe seen, it being intended that no writing be put-upon my wrapper, one or more holes, e, Fig. 1, and e', Fig. 3, are made in such manner that the direction can be easily read.

This is a simple, convenient, and durable wrapper, and will save the great waste in the paper nowV used for wrappers, as well as the labor of doing up the packages ot letters.

A few of the advantages derived from its use may be cited, as follows v First. A wrapper of this kind,made of, say, harness-leather, would save Very many times its cost in the mere item of wrapping-paper and twine, now used in doing up packages of letters, before it would wear out.

Second. A postmaster by its useAV will be able to put up larger packages in one-half thev time now occupied to do the same work.

Third. Great ease and facility are afforded to the postmaster to add letters to the packages after they are put up and addressed. Thus the postmaster will be enabled to make up the mails at leisure, which will avoid any mistakes which might occur by making up the mail in a hurry. He can easily add letters to the several packages by merely undoingl the straps or strings, and, indeed, sometimes he could introduce the letters by shoving them in the end of the package, and this would save the entire undoing, which is necessary in doing up letters in paper wrappers.

Fourth. An ordinary lead pencil may be used in addressing the package without any danger of the address being defaced by handling, and thus the use of writing-ink, which is inconvenient to use and always likely to get blots upon the paper or letters, is avoided.

I do not claim the invention of a wrapper for packages, nor do I claim the application of a strap and buckle, nor a string for tying 5 but I claim- The hole e e', through which the direction may be written on the letter or wrapper, inclosed substantially as described, for the purpose specified.

The above specification of my invention signed by me this 22d day of November, 1865.

EDEN REED.

Witnesses AMos RUSSELL, H. F. NICHOLSON. 

